Attachments
Summary
Following the outbreak of war in Sudan on April 15th, 2023, internally displaced people (IDPs) fleeing fighting between the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) began flooding into areas of relative security in Sudan’s Kordofan region. Local authorities have reported 582,210 new IDPs in those areas, while OCHA recently put the number at 602,000. With large numbers of IDPs continuing to flee into the region, the IDP population there may now significantly exceed those totals and could potentially be as high as one million.
In order to verify reports of widespread malnutrition and severe food insecurity among IDPs in Sudan’s Kordofan region, Samaritan’s Purse carried out a Rapid IDP Assessment in March, 2024. Between March 25th and March 29th, 2024, 33 enumerators on two survey teams carried out the assessment in six identified IDP settlements. During data collection, the teams completed a total of 1,076 household surveys. The goal of the assessment was to quickly evaluate levels of malnutrition and food insecurity in the IDP population and to better understand current health, shelter, and water/sanitation/hygiene (WASH) conditions in IDP settlements.
Assessment results confirm IDPs are facing extremely high levels of malnutrition and food insecurity, as well as barriers to healthcare access, inadequate shelter and poor WASH conditions. IDP food security has also been undermined by crop failure in the region. Data from a recent post-harvest assessment in the region covered by the Rapid IDP Assessment indicates average household sorghum output (the region’s primary food source) there dropped by 45% since last year. With IDPs continuing to enter the region in large numbers, this substantial drop in local production is likely to lead to even more extreme food insecurity during the upcoming lean season, creating a significant risk of famine. Immediate, large-scale emergency food assistance is urgently needed to avoid potentially catastrophic outcomes in the coming months.